Thurrock Lib Dems call for 'A Fair Deal for Armed Forces'

12.01.00am GMT Mon 1st Mar 2010

Over a quarter of the Armed Forces receive less in basic pay than a new recruit police officer or fire-fighter.

Carys Davis PPC and the Thurrock Liberal Democrats have today launched an online petition, 'Fair Deal for Armed Forces.'

Over 51,000 (over a quarter of the Armed Forces) receive less in basic pay than a new recruit police constable or fire-fighter. The basic pay for the lowest paid Private is £16,681.

The petition calls for the pay of lower rank soldiers to be brought in line with that of new police officers and fire-fighters. Under Lib Dem proposals, a fully-trained Private would receive an average basic hourly wage of £9.44 from current £6.74 per hour. This amounts to £430 per week, an extra £115 a week.

The petition will be sent to the Secretary of State for Defence at the start of the new Parliament.

Liberal Democrat Prospective Parliamentary Candidate for Thurrock, Carys Davis, said:

"Many of us will have family and friends in the armed forces and their welfare must be a priority for the next Government.

"Nobody can put a price on the sacrifices made by our armed forces, but recent operations in Afghanistan and Iraq have revealed the disparity between what we expect of our soldiers and how they are rewarded.

"I hope local people will sign up to the petition and call on the next government to pay our armed forces what they deserve.

Go to http://www.campaigns.libdems.org.uk/forcesfairdeal and sign online or download a print version to fill in and send back to Carys at Thurrock Liberal Democrats, FREEPOST 11350, 11 Merton Place, Chadwell St.Mary, Grays, Essex, RM16 4ZY